Muriendo Pinata
by BlackDragon741
Summary: When a person dies, all of their secrets die with them, but that doesn't mean they didn't exist. Such unspoken things rot, just as their corpse does, and affect the living world as if they still were alive. They haunt people, follow them, and make themselves known. The delayed consequences strike, and Alma's mother's secret, may just be the death of her.
1. Arrival

Chapter 1

Arrival

Alma stared at the half-skull mask in her hands, eyes brooding and face slightly contorted with anxiety. The stark white resembling bone was bright against the black eye sockets, and designs stretching like vines across its surface; forming a spider-web on the forehead, and a red gem between the eyes. The winds from the ocean sea tousled her black hair in all directions, annoyingly into her line of sight and against her lips. With a stressed sigh, she used a free hand to tame it back, and placed the mask upon her face. It fit tightly against her temples and around her ears, feeling unnatural and odd, and hoped with time she would get used to it. All the villagers on this... this _Pinata Island _could wear masks everyday; Alma could manage to as well.

Alma stood on the small deck of a fair sized boat, which was docking at Pinata Island. The captain of the boat, a native to the island and roughly fifty years of age, wore a large, blue mask, bearing designs of wind and water. He gave a familiar smile to Alma, though she had only known him for the week long boat trip, and said, "Well, here we are Miss Herrera. Do you have directions to your house?"

She nodded in response and pulled a folded piece of paper from her bra, the only place of storage when you're without pockets. The paper was wrinkled and it's creases looked as if it had been folded and unfolded multiple times, as Alma anxiously found herself looking at the simple, written instructions repetitively. By this point of time, she had nearly memorized the directions. She opened her mouth to speak, but found her throat too dry to speak with, as a result of going so long without speaking. They rarely exchanged words. Alma wet her lips and attempted to swallow, "Yeah... I should be fine. Thanks again. Have a good day." her voice felt strangely foreign after the said neglect.

She stepped off the boat and to the dock, slightly loosing her balance. Land may even take a while to get used to. She sourly pouted at the wooden boards under her boots, _"My firsts steps into a new life, and I'm already stumbling." _she thought. Alma gave one last look at the captain and tilted her head in acknowledgement, and began her trek to her new home.

Pinata Island seemed to contain many different habitats all at once, like a miniature zoo almost... of biomes. Most likely each containing the animals or... pinatas native to such._ "How does the anatomy of these things work anyway? That stupid history book I read didn't say much. Not much of anything I want to know about."_ Alma reached the end of her thirty minute walk and exited the forest into a pleasant grassland. Her lips parted in amazement as she watched the grassland expand into rolling hills. As the wind blew, she could see the blades of grass dance in waves like green water. Almost immediate to exiting the woods was exactly what Alma was looking for, her home.

The faded path veered off to a small hut made of wood and stone, simple and cute. Scratching the back of her head, she looked over the hut,_ "Well, it's a house. And I did pay cheap for it. Maybe I can renovate it later." _Using her new house key, she unlocked the door and stepped inside. It was a very large room with a small kitchen in the corner, and a tiny bathroom closed off from the rest of the house; it was very reminiscent to the apartment Alma once lived in. Three medium sized boxes were stacked by the front door; packages of her belongings she sent in advance to her move. With a scowl, Alma decided to begin the dreadful process of unpacking and 'settling in'.

With her personal items being seldom, she finished within hours and was beginning to clean a bit when she heard knocks at her door. Alma stopped mid-sweep and stared at the door with a bewildered expression,_ "Who in hell would that be?" _She scowled and set her broom aside and patted the dust off her maroon dress, "C-" Alma ungracefully coughed and scratchily finished "Coming..."

She made a mental note to drink water when possible, this couldn't keep happening. She slowly opened the door to see a young woman with brown, pigtailed hair, and a green half-mask with leaves spiking from all directions through her bangs. She smiled brightly, her blue eyes friendly, "Hello! I'm Leafos! Are you Alma Herrera?"

Alma blinked a few times and blankly stared, "How did she know I was here? I haven't met anyone yet. Hell, I don't even know where the town is." She readied herself to speak, but Leafos interrupted, "My father, Jandineiro, told me there was a new girl coming to the island to become a gardener! And this was the only vacant house with a garden area I could think of."

Alma nodded and nervously shifted on her feet, "Uhhh... It's nice to meet you." She looked anywhere but Leafos' face, "Sooo... D-do you think you could show me where the town is? I just got here and ah... I don't have a map or anything."

"Oh yeah! I brought you a map!" Leafos reached into her brown satchel and handed a folded paper to Alma.

Opening it up, it was of decent size, and Alma wasn't sure if to say the island was bigger, or smaller than she thought. Judging from the distance of the docks to the big black dot that marked her home, she was a dreadful hour walk from town. A very pronounced scowl crept onto her features,_ "No wonder the place was so damn cheap. It's tiny, and very far from town. And judging from those roads, people don't have cars here." _Alma sighed heavily, _"Well... maybe all that walking will get me less fat and more muscle."_

Leafos seemed to understand Alma's distress and said, "Don't worry, I know it seems like a long walk, but you'll get used to it. A lot of us have to walk long distances. Now, if you're planning on starting your garden, I recommend walking to town and going to Costalot's store, you can buy seeds and supplies from there. Do you have money?"

Alma searched the map for Costalot's store and absentmindedly said, "Yeah. 500 CC, I think."

Leafos began to walk away and waved, "Well, I'd like to stay, but I have to get back to my house. Good luck! I'll be sure to visit soon!"

Alma watched her walk the dirt trail into the wood and could honestly say she didn't care._ "I'm not here to make friends. I'm here to... to..." _she looked up at the clear sky and squinted at the sun. She failed to resist the urge to sigh, "What am I doing?"

After a long pause, she decided to retreat back inside to continue cleaning.

When she was satisfied with the house, as much as she could be at least, Alma made sure to bring a water bottle with her and her map and walk to the store. 'Costalot', such a terrible name for a store-owner. She admired the flora of the island, it was... different. The same, yet different. Apple trees were still apple trees, but not quite the way she was familiar with. Their bark was painted in designs, and the fruit they bore was in such likeness. And when she tested the fruit, it tasted all the same. Sweet and farm grown, but an apple nonetheless. Often times, she came upon 'paper' on the trail; upon closer inspection, they weren't just pieces of paper. It was the same confetti-like material used when making pinatas. Were the fauna of this island... _truly_ pinatas? Like, hollow and full of candy and all that jazz?

While contemplating a piece of white confetti, she vaguely began to hear a terrible noise. She slowed in her steps and strained to listen. The sound was almost like a quiet moaning, or growling. "An animal? A... _pinata_?" Alma cautiously continued along the winding path through the forest and heard the sounds getting louder, and it became apparent what it was. Alma's heart wretched, _"It sounds like a dying dog." _The painful growls and whimpers were very near at this point, Alma felt she wasn't too far off from the source, and wasn't sure if she should be scared, or worried. Perhaps both. She skittishly watched the landscape, darting her head in all directions like a prey being hunted. But this didn't sound like a predator hunting, this sounded like a hurt animal.

As Alma looked ahead of her place on the road, she stopped dead in her tracks, and gasped in horror. A massive creature was lying in the middle of the path, black and white stripped in a zig-zag motion. The whimpering was almost unbearable at this point, and she began to quiver. _"What is that thing?" _she nervously advanced towards it, careful avoiding any twigs in her path, and tip toed. It wasn't until she stood directly above the beast, looking down at it she saw what it was. Alma gasped audibly, _"Is that a wolf?" _The beast was definitely large enough, and had the similar anatomy. But it's fur... wasn't fur at all. It was the same papery stuff Alma encountered previously. _"What if... what if all that paper I found was from this thing?" _She attempted to examine the obviously pained 'wolf' and found nothing to be wrong with it, not externally anyway. There was no blood, or visible injury. But here it was, gasping and whining as if someone had shot the poor creature. At this point, Alma's ears were beginning to hurt, and her skin was stressed from having goosebumps for so long.

_"I wonder..." _Alma opened up her map and intently inspected the town,_ "Does this place have a vet? Or some kinda... pinata doctor?" _Sure enough, she found a building labeled, 'Doctor Patchingo.' She didn't know if it was the right kind of doctor or not, but a shot in the dark might sometimes hit the target. Folding the map, Alma looked at the wolf, _"The next question is... how do I get it there?" _The only simple solution that wouldn't stop popping into her mind was to carry it. But the thing was a wolf! Wouldn't it weigh almost one-hundred and fifty pounds? And what if it tried to attack her when she touched it? Alma decided to try her chances. She carefully reached forward and rested her hand on it's... paper fur. The beast's whimpering ceased immediately and it looked over at her, it's red eyes locking with her blue ones. Her body felt glacial as it held her gaze, most likely contemplating on how to kill her. She could see those sharp teeth poking out from under its jowls.

Alma tensed for a reaction, but it never came. It just stared at her, not doing anything, and the longer it went on, the more she became afraid and confused. She parted her lips and repetitively tried to force words out. Anything, something. The best she could manage was a weak, "Hi."

The paper wolf only blinked in response and shortly after, a drawn out wheeze escaped it's muzzle, and it laid back down. Alma pushed her luck and reached out with another hand, resting it next to the first, saying "I-I'm gonna help you. Okay? Buddy? Shit, I'm not even sure you can understand me... Just don't bite, okay?"

Alma began to wrap her arms around the wolf and it spazzed slightly for a second, but seemed too weak to fight back. Much to her pleasant surprise, the wolf was very light! It was like well... paper! Like picking up a hollow box. With care, Alma draped the large animal awkwardly on her shoulder and began to jog towards town, hoping whoever the Doctor Patchingo was, he could help this poor wolf. If you even can help a paper beast...


	2. Vincent

Chapter 2

Vincent

Doctor Patchingo sat in his small clinic, attempting to organize his multiple packets and paper reports from his clients. Paper's of little relativity to each other; invoices, bills, old patient's personal information, and records of inventory. He sighed heavily and sorted them into separate piles. The day had been quite normal, only a few calls out, and only two walk-ins, as the afternoon set in, his business slowed down considerably. The sun outside had begun to color the streets in an orange glow, harshly at such an angle, the light reflected into Patch's office. He hated this time of day, where the bright rays reflected into his windows and directly at his desk, and into his eyes. He attempted to hold his hand up over his eyes to protect them, but found it difficult to organize with one hand. He scowled slightly, 'I need to remember to move this desk and stop procrastinating.' The few moments he had time to do anything though, he decided sleep was much more important, as rare as it happened.

As he moved papers, it seemed as if the mess was only becoming worse, and little progression was being made, and Patch eventually stopped. He leaned back in his chair and stared at the ceiling without thought. Sometimes if felt nice to think nothing. Sometimes if felt nice to simply... stop. Sometimes... it felt nice to sleep. Patch drifted off to a much needed sleep, leaning back far enough in the chair, one would wonder why it hadn't flipped yet. The empty sleep was just beginning to become blissful when a sudden smashing awoke him with a start, causing him to tumbled backwards off the chair, and the chair to slam forward into the desk, skidding it a few good inches. Patch had a mini-heart attack as he floundered and attempted to regain his composure. He groaned, and stood up to see a distressed woman at his door. It was obvious by the slight dent in the wall, the slamming was from the door hitting the wall. Patch examined the woman, who wore a white, skull mask painted with black and red. But it was what she carried that caused him to tremble. She carried a large, sick Mallowolf on her shoulder, she then spoke, her voice rich and full of worry, "Are you Doctor Patchingo?"

Patch could only stare with his mouth agape, unable to form any true words, "I-I-I ah... Um..."

The woman rested the Mallowolf on the floor, panting heavily, "Can you do anything for it? I just... found it like this on the road. I have no idea what's wrong."

He hastily nodded and stumbled over to the sick pinata, kneeling down to it, he inspected it. It had no faded color, this was not her Mallowolf, it was wild! He looked up at her uncertainly, "Y-you said you j-just found this on the-the road?"

She stared at Patch with hard, blue eyes, "Yeah, and? Is that a problem? Look guy, can you help it or not?" Her tone was final, and no-nonsense.

He tensed under her tone and nodded, "I-I-I- yes, I can. Just gi-give me a m-m-m-moment."

Patch inspected the Mallowolf closer, its breathing was heavy, and had an odd smell to it he recognized. _'It must've eaten a toadstool.' _He stood back up and proceeded to the medicine cabinet to retrieve a bottle of pink liquid. With shaking hands, he poured the liquid into a spoon and carefully angled the Mallowolf's head and let it drink the solution. It's lips curled slightly over its sharp teeth and shook, responding to its slight bitter taste. When the spoonful was gone, Patch retreated and laid it back down, then stood up to address the woman, "I-It should b-b-be fine in a few hours."

She nodded and keeled down next to the Mallowolf, running her hands down its neck, "Thank you, Doctor." she paused for a moment and her eyebrows knitted together, "How much...do I owe you?"

Patch began to put away his medicine and clean off the spoon, "Well ah... for-for a M-Mallowolf, about two hundred eigh-eighty."

The woman scowled and attempted to tame her tangled hair, "I see..." she then reached into her satchel and pulled out an even smaller coin purse, and retrieved the specified amount in CC's.

As she handed them over, Patch couldn't help himself to ask, "A-are you new? I d-d-don't think I've seen you b-before."

Patch felt his stomach drop as she looked directly into his eyes, _'Like an ocean storm...' _she answered him, "Yeah. My name's Alma."

He couldn't break the eye contact and dumbly nodded, his heart pounding so loud, he could hear it in his ears, "..."

* * *

Alma raised an eyebrow at the Doctor, _'The hell is wrong with him? He keeps stuttering and staring.' _she assessed his strange, blue monkey suit. And not that slang for a tuxedo, it was quite literally a blue monkey's head wearing that classic 'doc monocle' on the forehead. The mask only opened up to reveal the lower part of his nose and mouth, and some strands of long, blonde hair peaking out from the top. _'I hate monkeys.' _Alma thought with dread, and found it very difficult not to state such to him. It was only out of politeness she held her composure... if sneering and saying "What?!" was holding composure.

He visibly flinched and averted his gaze, and seemed to try and focus on anything else but her, "I-I-I-I'm sorry!"

Alma pursed her lips, "Well... thanks again. I'll be on my way now." she bent down and began to pick the wolf up again.

The Doctor spoke, "Aaah... Y-You're t-t-taking it with you?"

"I don't see why not," Alma shrugged, "I'm gonna make sure its okay. And when its better, it can either stay, or leave."

He frowned in response, but didn't expand on the topic, "Well... b-be careful. I-I'll be around to check o-on it in-in a few days, Miss A-Alma."

She wasn't sure if she should be positive, or negative about such notion, and decided to not ponder it. With a swift motion, she exited the clinic, carrying the wolf over her shoulder.

By the time Alma got home, her legs and feet hurt, and her arms were tired from holding the 'Mallowolf', as the Doctor called it. Regardless of how light it was. She once remembered her grandmother saying,_ 'An empty cup may be light, but if you hold it long enough, it'll become heavy.' _Alma frowned deeply, and stared at the Mallowolf laying on the floor, "Just like all problems in life." She sighed and her muscles ached as she bent down to pick it back up, and rest it on the bed. Somehow, the pinata was asleep, possibly to help the recovery process. Alma laid down next to it and absently stroked it's paper fur while staring at the photograph she had perched on her night stand. It was a portrait of Alma as a little girl, and an elderly woman smiling next to her. _'If you let even the smallest spot of mold to sit, it will fester into something even bigger... like all problems in life...'_

* * *

Alma slept a dreamless sleep, and awoke to find that the Mallowolf was gone. Bolting up from the bed, she saw morning sunlight shining through the window, and searched to room. It was in the corner by the kitchen, that she saw the Mallowolf was sitting, staring at her. She squinted and studied him, "Wait a minute, weren't you black and white last night?"

The Mallowolf responded by panting and a slight wag to its tail. His 'fur' had taken on a blue color. Sections separated by the zig-zags marking where the blue was darker or lighter. It blinked its red eyes innocently at her and Alma gaped at it, "Well... shit." she slid off the bed and stumbled over to it, still half asleep, and keeled down, "Sooo... I'm probably gonna half to give you a name, huh?"

It stopped panting and tilted its head at her, Alma smiled, "Well... I'm not about to flip you over, so I'll assume you're a boy. How about I name you... Vincent?"

The Mallowolf blinked and leaned forward to sniff her, and Alma patted his head, "Yeah, I think that will work."

Alma went about a basic morning routine of eating a meager breakfast and showering. She wasn't sure what to feed Vincent, as for he refused the bits of raw meat she had, and decided to brush up more on her encyclopedia about Pinata Island. Walking outside with Vincent, she sat down in the grass to read. The book was obviously very old, and apparently belonged to her deceased mother. The spine was slightly torn, and the pages had multiple creases they had been folded at, some even had water and coffee stains. As Alma flipped through the book, Vincent laid next to her, resting his head on her leg. Alma paused, and noticed that his head felt... heavier. Last night he was light, but now, he felt as if he had mass to him. _'Maybe the book will say something...' _She flipped through and found a section titled, 'Pinatas and candiosity.'_ 'Sounds like a made up word...' _Skimming through, she realized that pinatas don't require sustenance, but receiving such gave them 'candiosity'.

As she read through the book, she wasn't sure if she was getting answers, or more questions. All the creature's names were ridiculously altered to share names of sweets or food, and things about how to get them into your garden, how to 'romance' them, ect. Alma was in the middle of reading the section about romancing when Vincent next to her began to growl. Looking up, she saw a small vehicle exiting the wood and coming up to her house, and shuddered when she realized it was the Doctor._ 'I thought he was going to come in a few days.'_ The Doctor parked his 'vehicle' and Alma had the terrible urge to make a remark, but held it in, instead saying, "Hey, you're early."

He stepped out and as he walked to meet her, she could see him staring at the ground, "I-I-I-ah... I c-c-came t-to see if-if-if the M-Mallowolf was o-okay."

She raised an eyebrow at him and frowned, _'Is it just me, or is his stutter worse than yesterday?' _Alma looked down at Vincent beside her, who intently watched the Doctor, "He's doing great."

Doc Patch moved closer and seemed to be surprised, "This Mallowolf... Is yours now?"

"I guess he decided to stay." she shrugged.

He nodded and looked up at Alma, "Th-that's good t-t-to see..."He paused a moment, "While I-I was here, I also wanted t-to give you my number, so t-the next time this happens, I can co-come to you instead."Patch reached into his pocket and handed a small piece of paper to Alma, who took and examined it.

On the paper, it simply said 4958. She raised a single brow, _'Is the population on this island so small, that phone numbers only have four numbers? Damn.' _Much to Patch's embarrassment, Alma tucked the paper into her bra, "Thanks."

"N-n-n-no problem. I uhh... think I-I should g-go now."

Alma narrowed her eyes at him, and saw his face was red, and his hands here shaky, and it hit her, _'You've got to be kidding me...' _She stared in surprise as the doctor stiffly turned and quickly walked back to his car and drove away. "Well, that was a short visit..." she muttered aloud. Alma looked down at Vincent, how returned the look with a twitch of his tail. "Well, we should go, buddy. It's a looong walk to Costalot's."

* * *

Alma did her best to walk and read the book at the same time, and her best was very poor. Vincent repetitively growled at her every time she bumped into him, or stumbled over an imperfection in the road. Thankfully, during this trip, she didn't happen upon any sick animals, and finally made it to the village. The last time she visited, she was too busy running through the streets frantically trying to find Doc Patch's clinic. It wasn't until now she could admire the foreign architecture. It had Spanish influence, with some twists of... something else... Most buildings were of different colors, and many spots of vegetation throughout the village. The roads were paved with stone, but not a single car in sight. Some bikes were parked in front of houses, but not many.

Between frequent glaces at her map, Alma managed to find Costalot's General Store. It was a yellow building with the sign hanging above the door, letters in giant, bold letters. Looking down at Vincent, she said, "I doubt the owner would like a Mallowolf in her store, wait out here, okay?"

Vincent looked up at her with intelligent eyes and nodded. Alma gave him a pat on the head before walking into the store. The inside was littered with shelves of merchandise. Seed packets, fruits, vegetables, varying statues, and fertilizers. A small frown came to Alma's face and thought, _'I didn't exactly come here to have a garden but... I guess it's something I can try out...' _When she came upon the register, a woman wearing an ordinary looking orange mask, a blue bandanna on her head, and short grey hair. Her face lit up at Alma's appearance, "Why hellllooooo! I haven't seen _you _before. Welcome to Costalot's, I'm Costalot, what are you looking to buy?"

Alma cringed, her voice was high and full of too many inflections that didn't make sense. Perhaps she thought it made her seem friendly. Alma forced a smile, "Uhh... Hi. Yeah, I'm a new ah... gardener. Got any sugge-"

"Oh, my dear! I know _exactly _what a budding gardener like you needs!"

Costalot walked around the register and led her to a small section of the store which seemed to be exactly meant for starting a garden. It was a starter pack including a shovel, watering can, a few starter seeds, and a grass packet. The price tag was labeled '200'. She frowned, _'I have just barely enough... hopefully I can make money off this, or I'll be in trouble.' _"I'll take it."  
A wide smile stretched across Costalot's face, "Oooh! I _knew _you would buy it! You would be a fool not to!"

Alma felt a strong urge to be rude to the store owner, but decided against it. Chances were, this was the only store she could buy supplies from. Alma made her purchase and got out of the store as quickly as possible, and walked out with two bags; one holding the watering can, the other holding the packets for plants. With shovel resting on her shoulder, she smiled down at Vincent, who obediently sat outside the door. He looked up and wagged his tail a bit, "Good boy. Vincent, do you mind helping me out? It's a lot of stuff to carry, and a long way home."

Vincent gave her an odd look and seemed to frown, if a Mallowolf could frown. Alma grinned, "What? Not strong enough, buddy?"

He snorted in response and motioned to take the bag holding the plant supplies from her. Carrying the bag in his mouth, Alma and Vincent set out for the long walk home.


	3. Rosa

Chapter 3

Rosa

Alma panted heavily as she sat down in the grass of her garden, spade in hand. Wiping the sweat off her brow, she admired the progress she had begun to make in her new budding garden. A good number of daisies, poppies and buttercups already blooming, some turnips and carrots that were just about ripe, and even a small apple sapling in the process of maturing. She was astounded at how fast the plants on the island grew. It was almost maddening.

She had recently just finished digging a small pond, and a few simple pinatas were being attracted to the garden. Strange, yet cute little things. The squeaky-worms, the ladybug-balls, and fat-birds. Alma continuously had to peak at her book to remember what the little things were called, yet it just wouldn't stick. She decided it would be best to take a break for a while and lit a cigarette, inhaling it deeply and sighed, the smoke blowing out in a flurry. While reading a page about how to breed the pinatas, she discovered it was necessary to build houses for them. Someone, most likely her mother, had scribbled a number next to the paragraph and labeled it, 'Builder no.' Alma regarded it suspiciously, _'I wonder if that's still any good. If it is, maybe I can set up homes for these...' _she looked up from her book and watched the silly pinatas wandering her garden, _'these stupid cute things.' _

She pulled out her cell phone and attempted to handle the book, and thumb in the number at the same time. It rang a few times before an older sounding man answered the phone, "Willy Builder. What can I do for you?"

Alma raised her eyebrows, surprised the number still worked, "Ahh.. um... Hello? D-Do you... build houses for pinatas?"

"Uhhh, yeah? Do you got an order?" the man seemed astounded.

_'He probably thinks I'm stupid or something.' _Alma spoke, "Uh, yeah. I was hoping for a...", she quickly flipped through her book, "How much is it for a... Whirlm? Yeah, Whirlm house, a Sparrowmint house, and a Bispotti house?"

The man paused for a bit before responding, "Well... let's see here, the Whirlm's is fifty five, the Sparrowmint is one sixty five, and the Bispotti is also one sixy five. So that leads you up to a total of three eighty five."

Alma felt her stomach drop, _'Aw shit, how am I gonna get that money?!' _she shakily replied, "Okay, thanks. I'll uh... order when I have the money." and quickly pressed the end button. With a great sigh, she looked up at Vincent, who was antagonizing the Whirlms. Prancing about, nipping at them and rolling them around with his nose. She couldn't help but grin. She took another long drag of her cigarette before a woman's voice called out to her, "Hey, Alma!" .

Looking over, she saw Leafos coming out of the woods, with a boy following her. He was bizzare, even from a distance, with an oddly shaped mask, giant thick glasses, and large teeth. Alma did her best to smile, but only managed to twitch her mouth, "Hi... uh, Leafos right?"

As they approached, Leafos looked at her garden, "Oh! You're already started! And you already got pinatas!" she walked up to a Bispotti and grinned widely at it, "That's impressive!"

Suddenly, Vincent sprinted up at her and snarled viciously, causing Leafos to gasp and stumble backwards. Her mouth was open and ready to scream when Alma bolted up from sitting, "Vincent!" her voice loud and commanding.

Vincent's ears flattened and looked over at Alma, who glared at him, "Get over here. Leave them alone."

He obeyed and quickly moved up to her, his tail down. As he sat down beside Alma, she said, "Sorry about that, I still need to train him."

Both visitors gaped in surprise and the boy spoke, his voice high and per-pubescent, "How do you have a Mallowolf?"

Alma shrugged and relayed the story about finding Vincent and taking him to Patch. Leafos' mouth was still slightly opened, "That's... very strange. But, I guess it's not impossible... Oh! I wanted to introduce you to my little brother, Seedos."

She gestured back to the boy, who nervously looked down at the ground and shuffled his feet. Alma nodded in acknowledgement, although he didn't see it. Awkwardness seemed to be settling in and she really hoped they would leave. Much to her horror though, Leafos asked, "So, how about I show you around town?"

Alma stared blankly and felt frozen, _'I really don't want to... but...' _She swallowed and reluctantly said, "Sure." she then took a last breath of her cigarette before putting it out on the bottom of her shoe and discarding it. Leafos crinkled her nose in response, but said nothing.

* * *

The hour long walk was dreadful, to say the least for Alma. She had a deep set frown, and Leafos chattered about obliviously. At first she attempted to pry into Alma's past, but quickly found such questions were ignored. The only thing she ever said was, "Does the name Rosa sound familiar to you?"

Of course, Leafos had no idea, and Alma was quiet ever since. Seedos dragged along for a short while, but seemed to decide he had better things to do than listen to his sister rant. Vincent kept his pace beside Alma, seeming to ignore everything and kept his ears alert to their surroundings. Arriving into the town, Leafos dragged them everywhere. From Costalot's store, which Alma had already been to, and an adjoining shop labeled 'Willy's Building.' A small tug was inside her stomach remembering she had to save money to buy from him. Leafos changed her topic from whatever it was before to the stores, "This is Lottie and Willy's stores. Lottie can buy and sell from you, and don't let her take advantage of you, she's greedy. Willy is her husband, and he's really lazy, so when you hire him, make sure you stick around to make sure he doesn't slack on the job."

Alma nodded along tiredly, they moved on. She was showed to many places, including, Bart's Exchange, Gretchen's Fethchem, Arfur's Inn, the Post Office, and Paper Pets. As they stood outside of Paper Pets, Leafos conspiratorially leaned towards Alma and whispered, "Personally, I think this place is junk. Dressing up pinata's is ridiculous, and the owner's daughter is a skank."

Alma raised a single brow in interest, this was the first time she had shown any response to Leafos' words. It was also the first time she heard Leafos say anything bad about a villager. Piqued in her interest, Alma walked into the store, despite Leafos' objections. The door 'dinged' as she walked in, and immediately found herself surrounded by shelves of different sized accessories. Glasses, scarves, collars, shoes, mustaches, bracelets... the variety was astounding. As she approached the register, a tired voice rang, "Hey, you're new."

A teenage girl dressed like a cat with short brown hair slouched over the counter, holding up her head. Vincent stepped forward to sniff her and she jerked back, "Ugh! I, like, hate dogs!"

Alma narrowed her eyes, "Like-hate?"

She flipper her hair back and crossed her arms, "I don't like-hate dogs. I _hate_ dogs. Are you stupid?"

Alma clenched her fist and Vincent glared at the girl, "Well, then, lucky for you he's a Mallowolf and not a dog. Is it some kinda tradition on this island to be rude to customers?" she said, thinking back to Lottie.

"Ugh, no." she rolled her eyes and sighed, "Look, if you wanna buy something, just do it."

Alma thought for a moment and grinned, "You know what? I don't think I'm gonna _buy _anything. After all, why would I want to buy from a clerk who harrassess customers? I think it would be much more appropriate to file a complaint with the store owners, namely, your parents. How do you think they'll feel? Knowing they may be losing money because of their daughter's poor customer service?"

The girl tensed and gritted her teeth openly, "You wouldn't."

"Why yes, I think I would. _Unless._..." Alma smirked maliciously, "Unless I were to be... _persuaded_ from such."

"Are you blackmailing me?!"

"Oooohhh... Blackmailing is such a... harsh word", she chuckled lowly, "Call it an incentive... to not get your ass handed to you by your parents."

The teen glared at her with an intense hatred and spat, "Fine! Take what you want and get out!"

With triumph, Alma proceeded to look at the stock of supplies and noticed that Leafos was standing at the door way, watching her with wide eyes. Deciding to ignore her, she looked at the section for neck accessories and spotted a chain collar. Picking it up, she slid it onto Vincent, who had a slight wag to his tail. The chain fit securely and suited him perfectly. She patted him on the head before saying, "I'm taking this." and leaving.

As soon as Alma, Leafos, and Vincent were outside, Leafos exclaimed, "Wow! I can't believe you did that!"

With a shrug, Alma pulled out a pack of cigs from her bag and lit one. Leafos stepped back and fanned the smoke away from her face, "Yeah um," she coughed, "That was great-_why _do you smoke?!"

Alma gave her a sideways look and proceeded to exhale smoke, "I'll keep that to myself."

"It-it's so disgusting! No one here smokes, not regularly at least." Leafos sounded as if she were holding that back for awhile.

She shrugged and said, "If you're done, I'll be going now. Thanks for showing me around. I guess." With that, she left, Vincent trailing with her.

* * *

Walking into Arfur's Inn, she found it had a good amount of people in it of varying appearances. Little girls with long nosed masks, larger girls with purple pigtails, small men with mechanical based masks... most all huddled together at one table. The inn was a mixture of a bar and restaurant. Dim lighting and wood floors and her seat at the bar, the bartender walked up to her, "What could I get for ya miss?"

He had a large barrel for a mask, and a small face set into it. Alma blinked for a second to catch her bearings. _'This must be Arfur.' _"Uhh... got any alcohol?"

"Sure do, what would ya like?"

"I dunno what kinds you got on the island but... whatever beer you think is best."

Arfur nodded and poured her a drink, and a man sitting two seats down chuckled, "Not many beer drinkers on the island. Can't say I've seen you before either."

Alma looked at the man, who had a large sombrero hat, and a orange mask that looked like a pumpkin. He reminded her a lot of a scarecrow. "Nope."

He nodded his head, "Name's Bart, owner of Bart's Exchange. Nice to meet you miss...?"

"Alma."

"Miss Alma." he smiled. "What brings you to our humble island?"

She felt a small clench in her stomach and anticipation gripped her, "Rosa."

"Hm?" Bart rotated his chair towards her, "Rosa?"

Alma nodded, "Do you remember Rosa?"

The man seemed to be thinking hard, "Name sounds familiar. Just can't put my finger right straight on it."

When Arfur came and delivered Alma's beer, he spoke, "I remember Rosa." Alma perked at such news and turned to him. Arfur continued, "Matter of fact... you're wearing her mask."

She pursed her lips in response, "Can you tell me what you know about her?"

"She lived here for about two years and then left. Never told anyone why, she just up and left. Was a regular here too. Especially before she left, she came here everyday." Arfur leaned on the counter and frowned, "But that was over twenty years ago... Long time ago to be looking for her here."

Alma felt her hands shake and took a long swig of her beer and asked, "Did she... did she have a boyfriend, or a husband?"

Arfur shook his head, "Not that I ever knew of."

_'Damn.' _she ran her hand along the cold bottle, starting intently at it and said nothing. Both men looked at each other and waited, but she never spoke. They re-assumed whatever they were doing previously. Alma finished her beer in silence and quickly left, leaving her payment on the counter.

* * *

Walking along side Vincent in the woods, the sun was just about to set, and the trees were bathed in an orange glow. Alma watched her feet as they walked the small path, contemplating the days events. Wondering if she'll regret being mean to the Paper Pets girl and what the bartender said. Her steps gradually slowed until she was at a standstill and Vincent turned towards her, cocking his head to the side. Alma looked up at the bits of sky she could see through the leaves and sighed. _'What made you leave? What was so bad here that you had to run away?' _Vincent whined, grabbing Alma's attention and she gave a sad smile, "Sorry buddy. Let's get home."


End file.
